Don't Worry Darling

It is less than the sum of Florence Pugh's performance.

Hollow and disappointing.

After this promising start the film seems not to know quite where to go next. The ending is certainly a let-down, and perhaps the screenplay should have had another rewrite.

Don’t Worry Darling is initially captivating because of all that it promised but when it devolves into little more than a few nods to stronger, more memorable predecessors, it becomes victim to its own ambitions and set-up.

The film sets out to lure us into the retro fantasy so that we can share the shock of Alice’s awakening - which looks a lot like a mental breakdown, with Pugh acting in a much more realistic register than anyone else.

It takes a while for Don’t Worry Darling to reveal itself as abysmal, because it spends such a grueling amount of time being merely pedestrian.

If Don’t Worry Darling was supposed to be some sort of “women power” awakening or commentary on our society’s failure to recognize a rise in ‘incel’ behavior, it failed miserably—and did so with as little substance as possible.

Don’t Worry Darling isn’t a layered cinematic masterpiece, yet it doesn’t need that status in order to be effective and entertaining.

It’s a bizarre experience that doesn’t always work. But underneath that is a noble attempt at experimentation and commentary.

Depending on what you consider worth going to the cinemas, “Don’t Worry Darling” will be worth the price for the cinematography alone or a fun on-demand watch if you hunger for more “Black Mirror” or “The Twilight Zone” in the comfort of your home.